Kemi-based vocalist Tony Kakko, mostly known as the mastermind and vocalist of Sonata Arctica, is set to perform two solo concerts in Oulu titled Sonata Sinfonica, with the Oulu Symphony Orchestra, lead by the conductor Jukka Myllys. These two exclusive shows are surely to refresh the Sonata Arctica classics with symphonic arrangements. The shows will be held at the Oulun Musiikkikeskus, on April 29th-30th 2017.

Bad news from the Swallow The Sun camp. Their longtime and original keyboardist, Aleksi Munter, decided to depart after one last show on their North America tour. The information was given by Aleksi himself, on the band's official Facebook page. The statement can be read below. The band informed that they will continue with their live shows.

Bay Area thrash icons Testament will celebrate the release of their new album, Brotherhood Of The Snake, with a tour of North America. The tour will kick off on April 6th in Albuquerque and will wrap up on May 20th in Las Vegas, and will come with support from Sepultura and Prong.

Metal Church have released a music video for their song "Needle And Suture". It was directed by Jamie Brown of Smokin' Gun Video Productions. "Needle And Suture" appears on Metal Church's latest album, XI, which was released last March and saw the return of vocalist Mike Howe.

"Deathwomb" and "NekroRegime" are two new songs from Swedish black/death metallers Omnizide, which can be streamed here as of now. The tracks are taken from the band's second studio album, NekroRegime, set to be released this December 16th via Carnal Records in Europe and Daemon Worship Productions in the USA.

The nominations for the 59th annual Grammy Awards were announced today. For the Best Metal Performance category, the nominees are Baroness, Gojira, Korn, Megadeth and Periphery. Gojira's Magma is also nominated for "Best Rock Album" and Metallica appears on the list for "Best Rock Song" with "Hardwired". Check out the nominees below.

Kreator will present their new album Gods Of Violence next year in North America. They are part of the lineup for the 2017 Decibel Magazine Tour with Florida death metal legends Obituary, old-school Ohio brutalizers Midnight and celebrated progressive death prodigies Horrendous (with regional openers in select markets to be announced next year).

Frontman of Swedish heavy metallers Sabaton, Joakim Brodén, was voted fifth in the Czech national singing competition "Český slavík" (Czech nightingale) on November 26th! This came as a huge surprise to the Czech domestic music scene, and it became a source of satisfaction for Czech metalheads as Sabaton is hugely popular in the Czech Republic. Brodén got 9826 points, trailing by roughly 2,000 to a fourth place. Joakim made a video to thank his Czech fans. You can watch it here. Maybe more people will check out their new album The Last Stand.

Romanian folk metal band, E-an-na, have revealed a video for a track from their debut EP, Jiana. The track is called "Înșivă" and it is the opening track. The video was directed by Anya of BlueCat Studio and can be enjoyed here.

Following the release of their Inceste EP this year, black metallers Imperial Triumphant are already preparing their next album. The band has been writing new material and the recordings will soon begin with Max Gorelick as their official second guitarist.

Swedish sludge/doom/post-metal quintet Gloson have confirmed that they will release their debut full-length album, Grimen, on February 13th through Art Of Propaganda on CD/LP/Digital. The album was mastered by Magnus Lindberg (Cult Of Luna) and its cover artwork was created by Ogino Design. You can feast your eyes on it below and see the song titles as well.

How about discovering a new band? Try Venefixion today. They are a French death metal outfit and they will release the debut EP Armorican Deathrites on Iron Bonehead Productions on December 9th, 2016. The good thing is that you can already listen to it in full right now at this location. Tell us what you thought about it and if you recommend it.

The resurgent Guns N' Roses and their successful Not In This Lifetime Tour continue to show no signs of slowing down as they storm into 2017 with more than 30 stadium shows lined up across Europe and North America. Starting on May 27th, 2017 at Dublin's Slane Castle, the just announced tour will hit 18 more cities across the UK and Europe. Following the European leg of the tour, Guns N' Roses will return to North America for even more stadium dates starting on July 27th at the Dome At America's Center in St. Louis, MO and then move along to 15 more cities across the US and Canada.

If you were hoping for a new Barren Earth album, your wish has been granted! The progressive melodic death metallers from Finland have shared good news recently as they begin the pre-production stages of a new record. For now, the group has shared some pictures from the process.